Comb and wattle receded

[RubelliteRose]

Should I isolate her from the others?

If she isn't being picked on and if you don't feel like you need to closely monitor her, I would leave her with the others. Separation would be stressful for both her and your other chickens.
I thought about egg binding, but I would think that her comb would be red even if this was the first egg in a while. Maybe she has developed ascites?
I will tag a few of the BYC experts to see if they have any ideas for you. @Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock @azygous

 

[Eggcessive]

I agree that I would keep her with her flock, but watch out for any pecking or bullying. Some may sense that she is not well, and pick on her, but not always. Being with the flock would be the best thing for her. Tail down and the other symptoms sound like she may be having a reproductive or other disorder. Make sure that she eats and drinks daily, and check her crop in early am to make sure that her crop is emptying. Crop problems sometimes accompany reproductive illnesses. Does she have any weight loss or an enlarged lower belly? What do her droppings look like?

 

[UKchooks]

I haven't watched her pass anything, but haven't seen any unusual droppings in the coop or run. Her crop seems to be emptying fine and she's eating and drinking well. Not sure about weight as I hadn't been handling her much prior to this as she's usually very speedy and feisty! But it does look like her belly might be somewhat swollen.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

3-year-old Leghorn girls. She's off lay and her comb and wattle have receded noticeably and are paler than usual. Other than that, she seems healthy - crop normal, feet normal, droppings normal, eating well and still bossing the others about

Could worms be the issue? Should I do a worm test?

She's now sitting in a huddled posture with her tail down. Still eating plenty, but clearly not right. Please help!

She is walking more slowly than normal and kinda awkwardly, like big deliberate steps.

inspected her vent, which looks normal as far as I can tell, but looks like her abdomen might be a bit distended? But if she was egg bound, I'd have expected her to not be eating normally?

Do you have photos of her and her poop?

If she's huddling with tail down, slow and her abdomen looks distended, I'd give her 300mg Calcium Citrate+D3 now, then once daily for a week.

She may be having troubles expelling an egg, membrane or lash material.

I assume you are in UK? If possible, get a fecal float to see if she does need deworming. If a vet can't do that, then deworming may help, hard to know. The symptoms you describe line more up with reproductive issues, but worms can also take it out of an already weakened bird. In the UK you should have Panacur (Fenbendazole), Flubenvet (Flubendazole) and probably Levamisole (Prohibit) available for deworming. I *think* Flubenvet is found in your feed shops but could be wrong.

Work on hydration and provide normal feed. While you are looking her over, take note if she have any lice or mites.

 

[UKchooks]

Her stomach is obviously swollen today and she's waddling. Still eating and drinking.

I'm in an urban area of the UK and most vets don't treat chickens. I buy their feed from a farm where the farmer is quite an expert in chickens and always happy to give advice, so I could try there, but not till Tuesday as it's closed today and I have to work all day tomorrow. I have a fecal test kit for worms, but it has to be sent off by post so will take a while.

I can buy calcium citrate tablets, which I could try crushing and mixing with water and syringing into her? Not sure about availability of wormers - I've only ever used Vermex.

 

[Perris]

Her stomach is obviously swollen today

is it hard or soft? Hard indicates egg peritonitis; soft indicates ascites aka water belly. They require different treatment / management, so please establish whether her swollen belly is hard or soft to help others to help you.

 

[UKchooks]

Her belly feels quite soft.

Here are some pics. The one where she's gasping was just after I handled her and felt her belly - I think it hurt her.

 

[Perris]

Then it is likely fluid is building up in her abdomen (rather than pus). This is a result of something deeper and usually untreatable going on, such as heart failure, liver failure, a serious respiratory condition, or cancer. Some people drain the fluid surgically, others opt to give TLC for as long as the bird has left, and others euthanize if or when they think the bird is suffering, since it will not recover from this condition. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. If you search for 'ascites' or 'water belly' you will probably find quite a lot of different cases, and varieties of advice, since it is not an uncommon condition.

 

[UKchooks]

Then it is likely fluid is building up in her abdomen (rather than pus). This is a result of something deeper and usually untreatable going on, such as heart failure, liver failure, a serious respiratory condition, or cancer. Some people drain the fluid surgically, others opt to give TLC for as long as the bird has left, and others euthanize if or when they think the bird is suffering, since it will not recover from this condition. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. If you search for 'ascites' or 'water belly' you will probably find quite a lot of different cases, and varieties of advice, since it is not an uncommon condition.

Thank you. It's not something I've come across before. Is there anything I can do to make her more comfortable?

 

[Eggcessive]

Her upright posture looks like many we have seen with egg yolk peritonitis. Those typically stand upright, may waddle or have a wide gait, may have a poor appetite, slow crop, and runny poops.